1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to communication devices; and more particularly to software security and content security serviced by the communication devices.
2. Related Art
Communication systems are well known. Such communications include wireless networks, wired networks, satellite networks, and various other types of networks. These networks now currently support large volumes of streamed audio and video content. Such content is referred to hereinafter as one or more of video content, audio content, audio/video content, streamed content, digital content, streamed digital content. Such content may be streamed and then stored on an electronic device for later presentation or simply presented upon receipt. All of such digital content has ownership rights established therewith. In order for the owner of the digital content that is transmitted across one or more communication networks to be protected from authorized use, the digital content is typically scrambled/encrypted/encoded or protected using another technique that precludes unauthorized use.
Currently existing networks in which audio and video content is commonly streamed are cable modem networks, satellite service provider networks, wireless wide area networks, digital subscriber line networks, and other types of networks in which content is streamed from a service provider device or a server to a client device or an intermediate device. Service provider networks typically include safeguards to preclude unauthorized users from intercepting and using content. The network operators typically load secure software to client devices, establish secure links between server devices and client devices, and/or encrypted the digital content so that it cannot be easily intercepted and copied. Further, these networks have heretofore been private, limited access, networks. However, the client devices of these networks, e.g., Set Top Boxes (STBs), are increasingly used to run applications that were previously reserved for Personal Computers (PCs). Currently STBs may be connected to open networks such as the Internet. With past systems, the STBs were often closed systems that were protected by safeguards of the provider network including code signature authentication and other validation techniques in systems.
With a central CPU of the STB having access to Internet content, the central CPU is vulnerable to attack by hacking, viruses, and other content that jeopardizes security STB. Typically, when a hacker accesses an STB, the hacker bypasses code updates and otherwise modifies the code that is run by the STB. By having the code made vulnerable, the hacker may access streamed content received and processed by the STB. In this fashion, the hacker may take the content and resell it for profit. Service providers have attempted to get around this problem by assigning code versions to the various code downloads to the STB. However, hackers may overcome this security measure by either blocking code updates or by spoofing the service provider devices into believing that the STB is running valid software.
These and other limitations and deficiencies associated with the related art may be more fully appreciated by those skilled in the art after comparing such related art with various aspects of the present invention as set forth herein with reference to the figures.